Earthtruth - The Beginning of the Clans
by kululupuppy
Summary: Wolfpaw, an apprentice of Rowanclan, has never really heard the true story of Earthtruth - A noble cat who saved the forest long ago and made the first clans. That is until an elder at the gathering decided to share. The twist is this elder knows the story like no other cat. Rated T for violence, blood, gore, mild abuse and cursing in the prologue.


**Hey, kululupuppy here! Or otherwise known as Llama :3 Anyways, here is my latest warrior cat fanfiction! Please do not flame unless given a reason why. Also, this story is rated T due to blood, violence, gore (mainly in this prologue), minor abuse and cursing. Please be advised. **

**Other than that, read on. Enjoy the story. Have a great time. And don't forget to give me feedback. That is the only way I will write and post more.**

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Prologue:

Shadows darted through the forest undergrowth in one large group. Few lead, running tail-lengths ahead while the rest followed at an easy pace. They dodged trees and skirted around small creeks. Paw pads silently hit against the moist spring ground.

Wolfpaw wished that he was in the front, leading his clan like a noble cat; just like Rowanstar, the first leader of his clan. One day perhaps. But there was no need to think so low about his chances! It was more than probable. Nightstar, his father, was currently clan leader! Zenheart, his mother, was once a clan deputy until stepping down – for good reasons! It was in his blood to become a leader.

His blue eyes glinted in the darkness, watching his surroundings carefully. The fresh forest canopy hid the night sky above. Sparkling streams glittered around him, unusual for the forest cats' territory. Cascadeclan would most likely have interesting things to say tonight.

Tonight was the gathering. It was Wolfpaw's fifth. Celestialclan had given him their blessing. Why else would his training be going so smoothly and his soul mate already come into his life? Despite some drama, Wolfpaw was able to control his life right now. All he had to do was play cool.

Looking directly in front of himself, he noticed that the cat leading in front of him, Dogfrost, had skidded to a halt. Her shaggy dark brown pelt bristled as she looked around to face him. A glare gleamed in her eyes as he almost ran into her shaggy tail; which hung low at her heels.

"Pay more attention, you good for nothing apprentice!" The hot-headed she-cat growled. But, when she realized who she had spoken to; her fur flattened and her amber eyes became softer. "Wolfpaw… I'm sorry. Thought you were your sister." Dogfrost rolled her eyes and purred, jokingly flicking him on the shoulder with her tail.

Wolfpaw just chuckled in amusement. It was true that Dogfrost preferred him over his sister since he looked more like his father. Serenepaw, his sister, took on most of his mother's traits and Dogfrost and Zenheart had always been feuding with each other even though they now had mutual respect. However, that was a long story that Wolfpaw didn't have time for now.

"Yeah, your fine Dogfrost." Wolfpaw managed to meow back after a few heart beats of silence.

"Good," Dogfrost blinked her amber eyes and turned her attention back to the front of the group where Nightstar was. Wolfpaw could still hear her mumbling though, "I don't want any leader's son holding a grudge on me for snapping." Wolfpaw kept himself from laughing louder, but he still grinned.

Boredom crept at the young tom's paws. The feeling of anticipation tingled up his legs and coursed through his body; inhabiting every part of him from the tip of his muzzle to the tip of his tail. Why was his father taking so long to move the clan into the clearing?

As Wolfpaw and the rest of Rowanclan were waiting, he felt another pelt brush against his own. A soft purring sound erupted in his ears. Claws unsheathing out of his paws as he whipped around to face the creepy intruder. His blue eyes caught hold of a light grey and white she-cat and he relaxed.

"Serenepaw, don't scare me like that!" Wolfpaw cautioned his sister. She grinned mischievously at him.

"But mom said it would be funny!" Serenepaw meowed through her giggles. She looked forward, searching the crowd for a she-cat that looked similar to her. Wolfpaw followed his sister's gaze and caught hold of him mother.

"Be more quiet, k?" Wolfpaw cautioned once more. His gaze wandered to Dogfrost, who was padding away through the group of cats. "Dogfrost was right in front of us and you know how she thinks of you!"

Serenepaw obviously didn't care. "Yeah, yeah; Whatever. You know how I think about Dogfrost!"

Wolfpaw grunted, annoyed by his sister's carelessness. How could she have such an attitude towards an experienced warrior like Dogfrost? Serenepaw would never understand Wolfpaw's thoughts though.

"I hope Nightstar gives the signal soon. We shouldn't have left camp so early!" Serenepaw continued on, complaining. She bounced from foot to foot impatiently. "Can you go tell them that it's ok if we go into the clearing first?"

"Why?" Wolfpaw suddenly found himself not caring about being still anymore. He was going to be patient unlike his sister.

"Come on, Wolfpaw!"

"Ugh, fine." Wolfpaw began shouldering his way through the crowd of clan-mates. Before he got far though, he turned around and called out to Serenepaw, "You owe me!" He could hear her hiss of disproval despite the loud muttering voices around him.

When Wolfpaw got closer to his parents, he could see Blazeclan and Oreclan had already taken their spots in the clearing below. He then understood why his dad was making the clan sit there and watch; Nightstar was letting Cascadeclan arrive first to bring tension off of them. But, it was too late. Even his dad could lose patience. Wolfpaw watched as Nightstar gave the signal for everyone to run into the clearing. Wolfpaw followed and was glad to be in the front of the group.

Even though it was Wolfpaw's fifth time to the gathering, he was still excited to see all of the sights. The full moon hovered over the great Earthtruth Tree. Glimmering stars covered the night sky, casting their light into the clearing below. Every cat's pelt gleamed silver at the tips. Blazeclan, Oreclan, and now Rowanclan mingled together. This was a sacred place on a sacred night. Celestialclan was watching them all.

Wolfpaw had only a few friends outside of Rowanclan, but he had no idea where they would be. Most of them were from Cascadeclan anyways and they were not here yet. This gave him no idea where to start.

Then, the place where the elders usually sat caught his attention. Two familiar elderly clan-mates, Erminetail and Riddlefur, sat down next to similar cats. They were all having a conversation; the newer elders talked and commented; the older elders listened; and apprentices like him interrupted here and there, wanting to get every single detail out of each story. Maybe Wolfpaw could sit there until the gathering officially started.

"May I join?" Wolfpaw approached the older cats. When he saw their unsure faces, he lowered his shoulders. "Please?"

"Wolfpaw?" He looked over at the cat who had said his name. Erminetail. Her kind expression and green eyes were inviting. "Why of course! A leader's son is always welcome." The rest of the elders shared glances, but soon relaxed.

"A leader's son?" He heard a nearby apprentice whisper enviously. Wolfpaw couldn't help but notice her pretty brown and white pelt.

"I wonder which one!" Another echoed.

"Has to be Nightstar; He has his pelt and eyes." The pretty apprentice now sounded bored.

Wolfpaw ignored the whispering apprentices and continued to focus on the elders. "Thanks, Erminetail." Wolfpaw realized how much he admired the friendly, once very beautiful she-cat.

"What were we just talking about again?" An orange tom with patchy fur asked, breaking the silence.

"I don't know, Patchedcourage." Erminetail replied. Her voice was kind and soothing. Patchedcourage said nothing back.

"Noisy warriors," Another cat, Riddlefur, growled under his breath but loud enough for the listening elders and apprentices to hear. "I bet the times when Rowanstar and Cascadestar ruled were quiet and peaceful. No drama."

"But wasn't it unorganized and troublesome then? There must have been so many things to work out!" The brown and white apprentice mused.

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that." Riddlefur mumbled. "What about before then do you think?"

"Siren's time?" Another elder tom next to Patchedcourage asked seriously. "That was worse than all other times combined." Many heads around Wolfpaw nodded in agreement. "You might want to go all of the way back to the beginning of Earthtruth's land; when cat's lived in their own tiny families. I'm sure it was very quie-"

"No, no, no!" Wolfpaw suddenly blurted out. Everyone turned to look at him. "Why should we care about those boring times before the clans? And what is the big deal about Siren? Yeah, Earthtruth and his followers were heroes, but wasn't that all in the past? Why are we so scared of it now? No rogues have come to our forest in generations. No cat is going to jump up and become a traitor so easily." The elders and apprentices looked at him with astonished faces. But, Wolfpaw did believe he had a valid point. He didn't care if he astonished or scared anyone with his ideas.

"Young apprentice," A new voice spoke up. "Young Wolfpaw; son of Nightstar and Zenheart," Wolfpaw searched the group of cats to see an old tom he hadn't noticed before. His jet black fur was scraggily and worn; his eyes clouded and blind. "You may appear to be a leader type, but not a knowledgeable one. It is unwise to speak of Earthtruth and all of the cats of the past that way – Even Siren."

Wolfpaw narrowed his eyes. How dare some elder speak to him like that! That elder was never a leader in his entire life and would never have a chance to be, unlike Wolfpaw.

Either way, the blind elder did not care. He continued to speak. "Wolfpaw, have you ever really heard Earthtruth's story?" Clenching his teeth, Wolfpaw thought about it. After a few heart beats, he awkwardly shook his head.

"Hmm… I know that story well and I am willing to pass it down to you and every cat here that is willing to listen."

This time, the pretty brown and white apprentice spoke up. "But we all know the jist of the story, Legendkeeper! Siren came to the peaceful forest with his rogues and began enslaving and sacrificing every cat who didn't follow under his rule! He was insane! But then, Earthtruth and his friends showed up and-"

"No, Flamingpaw." Erminetail meowed, stopping the apprentice. "Legendkeeper here knows it better than any cat. Celestialclan has showed him many things. Why else do you think the previous leader of Blazeclan renamed him Legendkeeper?" Flamingpaw looked just as annoyed as Wolfpaw.

"Please do tell then, Legendkeeper." Flamingpaw's friend persisted, ignoring everyone. "I'd love to hear unlike some of the cats around us."

"Oh, Hopepaw…" Wolfpaw heard Flamingpaw mumble in protest.

"No, I want to hear, Flamingpaw. What other opportunity will we get?"

"I want to hear too. You've got me curious now, all of you elders." Wolfpaw agreed, now very interested in what was to be said.

Flamingpaw growled. "Mousedung, you've got me Hopepaw. I just _hope_ your happy now." The she-cat grumbled, getting into a more comfortable sitting position. "But I swear Celestialclan have you if we miss anything important at tonight's gathering. We sleep three dens from Legendkeeper!"

"But how many times does he actually come out of his den?" Hopepaw growled back. The tone of her voice turned into more of a hiss as she continued on. "And why do you have to be so rude tonight? I know you're just showing off to get his attention."

Flamingpaw stumbled back, obviously surprised by her friend's words. Wolfpaw was simply amused. "Sheesh, Hopepaw. I'm sorry. I'll listen without a word." After that, the she-apprentice laid down with her chin on her paws and fiery amber eyes focused.

Hopepaw seemed to have calmed down. "That's better. It's not hard to be nice like me."

Wolfpaw and the elders chuckled with amusement. When all of the talking died down, Legendkeeper spoke once again. The story began.

"You see, everything began when Earthtruth was born." Legendkeeper rasped. "But his true story began when he was caught in a snare. Back then, the rogues were not the only predators in the forest. Foxes also thrived and two-legs put up snares to catch them."

"What's a snare?" Hopepaw asked enthusiastically.

"A snare is a two-leg trap. Siren and his rogues used to take advantage of them and check nightly for any unlucky cats. We commonly see it made out of silver string these days." Patchedcourage explained. "Never go near one if you don't want anything snapped off of your tiny body. Luckily we don't see them around anymore."

"That's good." Hopepaw purred. "I feel like a kit again!"

"Now listen, ok?" Erminetail purred back, tail flicking to and fro anxiously. Wolfpaw could see that she wanted to get into the story as much as he did.

"Yes, yes." Legendkeeper coughed. "Earthtruth's true adventure started when he was caught in a trap."

"Hold on, Legendkeeper." Even Wolfpaw was annoyed at himself for interrupting once again, but he had to. "We want an introduction to Siren first! That's how all stories should start, right?"

Legendkeeper coughed again, fresh saliva flicking onto all of the close cats. His whiskered twitched humorously. "As you wish young Wolfpaw. Things all started when Siren came to the forest…"

Above the thinned forest canopy was the night sky. It was similar to any gathering's sky, with a full moon lighting the land below and shimmering stars framing it. It was so bright and magnificent that all water gave a pretty reflection. All cats seemed to be part of Celestialclan themselves.

Only one light pierced through the beautiful night, ruining its pureness. From above the stars you could see a dancing red aura. Grey smoke trailed into the sky, making the surrounding area seem patchy and dense. Flames licked at the surrounding trees, dreaming of burning them to ashes. However this fire was controlled.

The fire was in the middle of the spacious clearing, contained by a ring of bones and rocks. The ground was covered in ash, blood, and crow food. A pile of blackened bones could be seen on one side of the clearing; fresh blood splattered on and around it. Another pile of bones acted as steps, leaning against a tall tree that was the closest plant life to the fire. A long, sturdy limb from that tree dangled over the peak of the flames.

There was life inside the clearing. Feline eyes glinted from within the shadows and pelts gleamed bright red from the fire's glow. Lean muscles could be seen on all of the well-built, large cats. Jagged scars, some still bleeding, were engraved onto each cat's skin. Despite that, they all looked healthy and very well-fed.

One tom cat, the largest of them all, sat on top of the branch above the fire. Fresh beads of sweat underneath his fur dripped into the flames. His pelt was pure white, shaggy, and covered with many old battle scars. His almost red amber eyes peered down at the cats below. Though, his attention was brought to the full moon above. It was close to being directly over his fire.

The white tom opened up his maw to reveal sharp yellow teeth. He craned his neck around so he faced his right shoulder and bit down at hard as he could. Fresh blood spilled into the fire. The fire crackled. The tom then bit into his left shoulder. More blood spilled.

"Eztli, I call upon thy!" The white tom yowled into the heavens. "Give me strength to carry on thy wishes! Let thy bring on eternal darkness and let the suffering in this world end! Let blood of the last living royal be shed in thy honor!"

The fire erupted beneath the tom. Flames licked at his paw pads, burning into them. The tom shrieked in a glorious hysteria. Oh how much did he love the pain!

Suddenly, something caught the tom's eye. Below, cats lead in a single filed line entered his clearing. He could see some of his goons surrounding them; guarding them from any chance of escape.

"Good, good. Thank you for escorting them to the party!" The tom dipped his head to the guards. "And thank you for coming so soon! We've all been waiting for you arrival, especially Eztli!" He couldn't help but grin in excitement.

"Siren," One of the guards, a giant among giants of all cats with large muscles and a thin orange pelt began. "Some of the traps are missing."

"Missing?" Siren's grin was quickly replaced by a frown. His white fur bristled. "I wonder who made them go missing…" Siren stopped and tilted his head to the side. "Oh, what's that? It's your fault and Eztli says so. You're unlucky that your punishment isn't the same, beautiful, glorious fate these cats have, Yaeotle."

The orange cat, Yaeotle, bowed his head and closed his eyes. He stood as still as a statue Siren lifted up one unsheathed claw to Yaeotle's face. Then, before another word could be said, Siren brought his paw down. Blood spurted. It oozed out of four clean, deep claw marks going from Yaeotle's left ear to his chin.

"Perfect." Siren muttered. "Now go offer it to Eztli. Go check the traps again and don't come back until those traps have been replaced." With that, Yaeotle raced to the fire.

"What do you have in store for me, Siren?" A light bluish grey she-cat stepped forward. Her blue eyes were wide as if they could pop out at any second. "Can I be cut too?"

"No, Citali. Right now it is your job to introduce me to tonight's sacrifices. I believe you have picked the finest felines out of the group."

"Oh yes Siren. They are all mighty fine; juicy and full of blood. Eztli could never be happier." Citali slowly led Siren down the line of cats. They all huddled in fear, looking at their paws and wishing to be in a different place. None of them would bother to fight their way out.

"This kit would be perfect, no?" Citali meowed, stopping next to a young pure white cat. "Eztli would be honored to receive blood from a cat that looks just like you, Siren."

"Yes, he would." Siren murmured, looking at the kit. He pushed the kit with one paw, sending him rolling onto the ground. "This young tom is blessed to be in the fire." The kit mewled, trying to avoid eye contact with the larger cat. "Come on, now. Eztli doesn't want a kit like you, does he?" The kit tried to crawl away. "Look at me or I'll gut you right here and now!" Siren yowled. He rushed after the kit.

"No!" A she-cat yowled from the line. She darted between Siren and the kit. Her silvery grey fur was matted and wet with spit and blood. "Stop! He's just a small kit. What did he ever do to you and your god?" Even though the she-cat was almost too weak to stand, she firmly held her ground. She was a protective soul.

Siren snarled angrily. "This cat is getting an opportunity so rarely achieved! Eztli is welcoming him to paradise; ending his suffering!"

"How is throwing a cat into a blazing fire ending its misery?" The she-cat spat back. "Maybe our misery comes from you and your god!"

Siren was silent, his look of anger frozen on his face. His maw was half opened as if he wanted to say something, but forgot what.

Finally, the silence was broken and Siren was able to talk again. "Eztli is here to save us all. He has chosen me and every 'rogue' in this clearing to save this world! He is the only god that can accept the only way for the sun to remain strong. He is the only god that can accept our sacrifices. If it weren't for us, bitch, you would have been dead a long time ago."

The she-cat managed to shrug. "I suppose it doesn't matter now that I'm going to die soon. I'll still fight you even after death, Siren. Maybe my sacrifice to this Eztli will bring a force that stops you. May you one day prey that Celestialclan lights your path." And with those final words, she collapsed in fatigue.

"Shimmeringbreeze!" A similar looking tom yowled mournfully, rushing to the silvery cat's side despite the many rogues that chased after him. "Shimmeringbreeze are you alive!" The tom wept, brushing his muzzle across her pelt.

"Get away from her!" Siren pushed the cat away with his claws. "Her fate does not concern anyone but death now." Siren turned to a few of his guards. "Prepare the sacrifices. I'll be in my den."

The two guards nodded. They began knocking out specific cats, bashing their heads against the ground. The rest were led away by other guards. No cat put up a fight.

Later that night, when the full moon was directly above the fire, Siren was on his branch. At his paws was the white kit from before, shivering and scared. Siren brought one claw up and then down at a harsh force. His claws dug into warm fur.

The kit felt the pain explode in his chest. Looking downward, the kit could see his own still-beating heart being ripped out of his chest. After that, darkness came. Siren kicked the kit's limp body into the fire.

The kit's fur slowly burned away. His skin and muscle oozed off of his bones. Soon he was like all of the carcasses in the fire.

Siren yowled happily into the night sky. Both his god and Celestialclan watched from above. The starry kit, now in a happier, blessed a singled kit that was born that night. That new born kit would grow up to be the savior of the land.

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**Was that good? Bad? A waste of time? Did I really jerk your emotions or not? Do you think I should have made the kits death even more vivid (:3) or left that part out? Tell me what you think! Review! If you had the time to make it this far, then you have the time to review :P **

**But really, I should be saying thanks... So, thanks :D Hope you enjoyed! **

**Cya later fellow warriors!**


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